The Tutorial
Cricket 22 excels from the start, with its impressive tutorial that not only takes you through control structure in great depth but also teaches you the rules of cricket in the process, all while remaining short and economical. Big Ant has developed Cricket 22's control system to a greater level than any of its rivals, as demonstrated by that excellent lesson. You can pick between arcade and pro control schemes.
When you bat, that color-coding system comes into play, giving you vital split-seconds to determine which shot you'll use with the right stick before timing it with one of the buttons. It works well and is very similar to the approach used in prior cricket games.
Cricket 22's fielding system has also been improved, with a risk/reward element included if you suspect a run-out, allowing you to select which end to throw at and whether to throw safely to the keeper or bowler, or avoid the stumps and risk giving overthrows.
Playing Modes
Once you've gotten the hang of the controls, you'll be able to choose from a vast range of matches and activities. You can begin by playing the entire Ashes series or a single game in any competition you like. Alternatively, you may play Cricket 22's Career mode, which picks up where Cricket 19's version left off, but with some adjustments that make it feel a little more believable.
When you get into the game's career mode, the choice to play as a single player is a good way to start the game. After you've created your player's physical attributes, you'll need to find an agent and join a club cricket team; as you progress, you'll be considered for county cricket and, eventually, your national squad.
In Career mode, you'll sign with an agent and begin your career with a top club team, before moving on to a county level and attempting to make the international team once your bowling, batting, and fielding skills have been improved. Net and gym sessions (the latter incorporating amusing mini-games) allow you to work on specific areas of weak areas or strength so that you can finally shape yourself into any style of cricketer.
Summary
Overall, Cricket 22 is the most advanced cricket game ever developed, both in terms of how it incorporates all of the numerous forms of modern competitive cricket and in terms of its production quality, which include players who are modeled after their real-life versions and so on. However, when it comes to production values, it tends to show its small budget in compared to EA Sports and 2K Sports' big money sports games. Its players, for example, have a passing resemblance to their human counterparts, but not convincingly.
In other words, Cricket 22 has all the versatility you could want in a cricket game, and its control mechanism is outstanding - responsive, supportive of all the complexities of cricket, and as straightforward as you could wish for given the sport's complicated nature. Without a question, the game nails the game's most vital components.
